AAP

Malcolm Turnbull has written to the Western Australian government seeking its interest in a ‘city deal' for Perth.

The Australian market has opened slightly higher after US president Donald Trump's budget plans bolstered Wall Street overnight.

The Australian dollar has fallen back against its US counterpart which has lifted against a basket of major currencies ahead of the release of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting minutes.

Gold prices have fallen, as the US dollar rebounded from 6-1/2-month lows and investors shrugged off heightened political risk following a deadly suicide attack in Britain.

Oil prices have settled a bit higher as expectations of an extension to OPEC-led supply cuts overshadowed a White House proposal to sell half of US petroleum reserves.

The share market has closed lower after falls by the banks and miners offset gains from healthcare, retail and energy companies.

Estimated payouts under the proposed bank levy suggest it will raise less than predicted by the federal government, analysts say.

Woodside Petroleum plans to boost cash flow through expansion of existing projects over the next few years and has ruled out investment in any major greenfield projects in the near term.

The share market has opened in positive territory after strong leads from Wall Street.

Gold has extended its biggest weekly gain in five weeks as the US dollar falls against the euro, while US political turmoil fuells demand for bullion as a safe-haven and reduces expectations of rapid Federal Reserve interest rate rises.

The Australian dollar is solidly higher against its US counterpart as the greenback continues to soften.

Oil prices have risen as growing confidence that top exporters will agree to extend supply curbs this week and speculation that the cuts could be deepened further have pushed prices to their highest levels in more than a month.

Australian shares have shaken off their weakness of last week courtesy of a bounce in energy and mining stocks as speculation of tightening world oil supply boosts commodities.

Westpac says the government's new bank levy will hit its second-half profit by $65 million and will be the equivalent of a 4.3 per cent cut to dividend over a full financial year.

The share market has opened higher following strong leads from Wall Street.

The Australian dollar is firmly higher against its US counterpart as the US dollar index falls to its lowest level in six months.

Gold has risen as the US dollar softened on political turbulence in the United States, boosting bullion's safe-haven appeal.

Oil prices have risen, closing out a second week of gains on growing expectations that OPEC and other producing countries will agree next week to extend output cuts.

The Australian share market has closed lower as investors offload banking stocks amid political uncertainty in the US.

A Perth company has been fined $56,000 for illegally clearing 18 hectares of land, destroying native vegetation and wildlife.

The Australian market has opened slightly weaker despite a positive lead from US markets overnight, with modest gains among the miners failing to offset declines by big banks.

Wall Street has rebounded from its biggest sell-off in more than eight months with help from a move to loosen internet regulations and strong economic data.

The Australian dollar has slipped back against the US dollar, which rebounded along with the major US share markets following appointment of a special counsel to head a key federal investigation in the US.

Oil prices settled higher on Thursday, as key producing countries suggested they would extend supply cuts to reduce an ongoing global crude glut.

The share market has fallen for a second straight day as political uncertainty around US President Donald Trump sours risk appetite.

The prospect of a bidding war for Fairfax Media between two US private equity funds has driven the company's shares to a fresh six-year high.

The estate of the late Perth mining billionaire Michael Wright is fighting a court decision that awarded $25 million to his youngest daughter, Olivia Mead, arguing the $3 million he left her was enough.

Virgin Australia is likely to post an annual underlying loss after a subdued domestic travel market and Cyclone Debbie contributed to an increase in its loss for the third quarter of the financial year.

Increased price competition and greater content costs have helped push Optus's full-year profit down 11.8 per cent to $794 million.

The Australian market has opened sharply lower following a slide on Wall Street over concerns U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly tried to interfere with a federal investigation.

The S&P 500 and the Dow notched their biggest one-day fall since September 9 as investor hopes for tax cuts and other pro-business policies faded after reports that US President Donald Trump tried to interfere with a federal investigation set off alarm bells on Wall Street.

The Australian dollar edged higher against the US dollar, which fell along with the major US share markets on worries over the stability of the Trump administration.